Clamp connections are increasingly used in exhaust systems of internal combustion engines, especially in motor vehicles, to connect exhaust gas treatment device with pipe sections. The replacement of the exhaust gas treatment device or of components thereof is simplified hereby.
An exhaust gas treatment device usually has a housing, whose cross section is larger than the cross section of a pipe section leading to the housing and of a pipe section leading away from the housing. Correspondingly, the housings of the exhaust gas treatment device may usually be equipped with an inlet funnel and/or with an outlet funnel, which has a connection piece, via which the respective pipe section is connected to the housing. To make it possible to connect the pipe section to the connection piece by means of a clamp connection sufficiently rigidly, relatively strong forces must be transmitted via the clamp. It is advantageous for a reliable clamp connection if the connection piece and the pipe section are centered or aligned relative to one another, so that the clamp connection must ultimately bring about the axial bracing only.
To center the connection piece relative to the tubular body, it is possible, in principle, to provide an additional support pipe, which is inserted into the connection piece and protrudes axially into the pipe section within the arrangement, in the area of the clamp connection. The support pipe is coordinated to the dimensions of the connection piece and of the pipe section such that the desired alignment or centering is obtained. Further, it is possible, in principle, to weld the connection piece to the support pipe and to establish the clamp connection with the pipe section at the support pipe. In any case, an additional effort is needed as a result when manufacturing the exhaust gas treatment device and when establishing the connection of the pipe section with the housing.